PITTSBURGH - The University of Pittsburgh is among several dozen researchlaboratories named in an independent National Institutes of Health auditwhich suggests there is a massive "waste" of tax money - including nearly$116 million at Pitt alone - onuseless, often-times redundant research..

A news briefing to release that audit will be held Saturday (4/19/03) at12:30 p.m. David Lawrence Hall, Room 120 at Pitt.

Following the news conference, research-reform activists plan a rally andmarch to the Pitt Science Tower.

The audit estimates the cost to taxpayers for the wasteful spending ismore than $1 million an hour. The report details examples where theidentical research - all funded by the NIH - is duplicated needlessly inscores of labs.

Pitt - details will be released Saturday - ranks in the Top 20 of U.S.research labs garnering about $10 billion in government research.

"What's more important - keeping multi-million dollar laboratories open todo redundant research, or keeping Americans alive," asked Mr. BudkieFriday. He is calling for a "radical restructuring" of the NIH grantapproval system.
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